Of Fevers and False Promises
by Gingersnaps2507
Summary: Agh! Another summary. This is basically just another Cal and Ethan fanfic that I've been working on (sick!Ethan and caring!Cal if you couldn't already guess) but I've added a bit of a twist because I wanted to explore their past a little as we learn so little about it from the show itself. Hope you enjoy reading! Warning: HINTS AND MENTIONS OF ABUSE. (and the odd bit of vomiting!)
1. Chapter 1

Of Fevers and False Promises – Chapter One

 _I know that I already have another fanfic (that's arguably a little bit similar to this one) that's nowhere near finished on here, but I've been working on this one for quite a while now and for some reason I've gotten really excited about it recently and I've really wanted to upload it. I've gotten over 11,000 words written as I'm writing this, so I hope it's not a let-down!_

 _This story was originally a pretty ordinary sick fic, but whilst writing it I decided that I wanted to explore Cal and Ethan's past a little more, and I'm afraid I do have some quite dark plans for this. At this point I'm only going to warn you about_ _ **hints of abuse**_ _, but as the story goes on it may become more explicit. I will of course add addition warnings to chapters with that kind of content._

 _As always, I hope you enjoy reading. Reviews (and constructive criticism) are always welcome and often helpful, so I would appreciate if you left one as I am a little nervous about publishing this story! – Iris x_

 _ **Cal is 18 and Ethan is 15.**  
(This age gap is a bit larger than it should be, as this story is set in January so Cal will soon turn 19 – I started writing this before their birthdays were revealed)_

* * *

Cal watched as Ethan walked through the front door, looking uncharacteristically tired and subdued.

The older had been on a gap year for the past five months, only popping back home for the odd weekend in between the travelling. However, having not visited for a good two months, excluding the three days at Christmas, he'd decided to drop by for a while longer during a break in his schedule.

Ethan pushed the door closed, before rubbing his forehead a little and turning around, spotting Cal waving at him through the arch that led into the living room. His eyes widened, "Cal! What are you doing here?"

"Oh, nice to see you too!" replied the 18-year-old, placing his empty mug on the floor next to his feet.

"Sorry, it is. I just-" he paused, seemingly hesitating on whether to hug his older brother or not. Ethan ended up yawning into his sleeve, and busying his hands afterwards by straightening his backpack and rubbing his eyes, "...I wasn't expecting it, that's all."

"Yeh, I thought I'd drop by and surprise you two, as Dad is no doubt-"

"Caleb," Matilda warned.

"Okay," Ethan nodded faintly, playing with a loose thread on his school jumper. "M'gonna go upstairs. I have a bit of work to do but I'll come down to talk at dinner," he announced awkwardly, making what looked like a quick escape up the stairs.

Cal frowned. He knew Ethan was awkward, but he was usually pleased to see his brother. He'd never avoided hugging him, either. "What's up with him?" Cal questioned. "He's not been panicking a lot again, has he?"

"No, don't worry. That's settled down considerably now, like I told you," said Matilda.

"It's not Dad is it, _what's he done?"_ Cal asked frantically, to which his mother quickly shook her head. "Work load, then?" he further inquired. "Actually, we're talking about Ethan; he's probably enjoying the work load." Cal sighed.

"Mmmm, I don't think he's very well." She replied.

"Based on what?" queried Cal.

"Well, he overslept this morning-"

"That's not like him," Cal interrupted.

"Precisely, I went up at 8 and he was still sleeping, and usually he leaves the house at quarter past to walk to school. I had to drive him in and he was still late. He looks exhausted, keeps rubbing his head and his cheeks are all flushed as well."

The 18-year-old nodded. "I'll give him a bit, then go and check on him before dinner," he decided.

Matilda hummed in agreement, "you won't get much out of him though, Cal. You know that. He won't say anything that might lead to him having to miss school tomorrow."

"Yeh, I know," he agreed. "So, as we're giving Mr Stubborn some time to do his ' _homework_ ', I think I'll tell you all about Australia."

* * *

" _Nibbles_?" Cal called, knocking softly on their bedroom door. It was near enough 6 O'clock now, and as Cal had finished telling his mother everything about his recent trip over another two cups of tea, she'd decided to get up and start on dinner and so here Cal was, checking on Ethan as previously decided. "Little brother… I'm coming in!" he announced, gripping the door handle as he did so.

It wasn't strange for Cal to have found Ethan in his bed when they were younger, and he didn't doubt that the younger sibling had crawled under his brother's covers at least a couple of times when Cal had left home. But what he wasn't expecting was to find him curled up in it now, at 15 years old, when there was every chance that Cal would find him. He even had 'Fluffy Bear' with him, – that was his own, Cal had lost his at the Zoo quite some time ago – curled under his chin, and he was fast asleep.

Cal's heart melted at the sight, but it didn't mask all the concern as to why his teenage brother was snuggled up asleep in his brother's bed.

The older sat himself on his bed next to where Ethan was lay. "Ethan…" he said softly, brushing stray pieces of hair off his forehead. He took this opportunity to check his little brother's temperature. Definitely feverish.

Ethan stirred, wrapping his arms tighter around his teddy as he moaned faintly.

"Dinner's going to be ready soon, Eth…" he murmured, stroking the younger's hair in hope the action might help wake him a little. Cal shook his head in concern; he was usually such a light sleeper.

Ethan simply rolled over so he was facing away from Cal. "Mmmm, no, Caleb. I'm tired, don't wanna play…" he slurred, clearly half-asleep.

Cal chuckled fondly. He'd had many conversations with Ethan in the night, only to realise he was practically asleep but was somehow still able to form a nearly coherent response. It must be something to do with the eyes in the back of his head.

He shook Ethan's shoulder rather roughly, and his eyes finally fluttered open, soon squinting at the bright light. "Sorry, Cal. I'll be down in a minute. I didn't mean to fall asleep," he said sheepishly, sitting up on the bed.

"You managed to take your glasses off. And get into my bed." Cal observed, tossing the black frames into his lap.

Ethan's gaze fell on his lap. Cal wasn't sure if this was out of embarrassment or because he was studying his glasses. "Oh, umm- yes, I did…"

"What's up with you, 'ey?" The older asked, slightly concerned. He rested a hand on Ethan's shoulder and pulled him in a bit closer.

"I'm fine, honestly," Ethan stated, looking up at Cal with sad, brown eyes that suggested otherwise.

"Sure?" he pushed.

"I'm sure." Ethan confirmed.

"Alright, where's my hug then, Nibbles?" Cal smiled.

Ethan didn't waste much time throwing his arms over Cal's shoulders. "I missed you."

"I missed you too."


	2. Chapter 2

Of Fevers and False Promises – Chapter Two

 _ **CBloom2**_ _, thank you for your review, hopefully the wait hasn't been too long! Xx_

 _ **Ebeale** , thank you, I'm glad to hear it! Xx_

 _ **Teeloganroryflan**_ _, thank you so much! It's nice to hear that you recognise me from other stories that I've written:)_

 _ **Panicatcasualty123**_ _, thank you for your review. I'm sure you'd do an amazing job based on some of your writing I've read on Tumblr! I'm glad to hear that you'd like to read more of this story, though:)_

 _ **Casslourocks**_ _, thank you. The story is still purely sickfic in this chapter, though I have gone done a different route in later chapters, so you'll have to watch out for any hints I might have added!:)_

 _ **Tato Potato**_ _, thank you so much! I always worry about whether I've captured our favourite doctors just right, as I find portraying existing characters in stories really important!:)_

 _ **Guest**_ _, thank you for your review, here is the next chapter!:)_

* * *

"Oh Ethan, darling, you look terrible," said a concerned Matilda the next morning, walking over to her youngest son and resting a hand on his forehead, the other placed comfortingly on Ethan's arm. "Go back up to bed, love."

The 15-year-old shook his head. "I'm okay, mum," Ethan managed a small smile.

Matilda chuckled lightly, "Course you're not, don't be daft. You've definitely got a temperature, sweetie, and you're shivering!"

"I'll be okay," Ethan reiterated, looking at his mother with tired eyes.

She studied his face for a bit. He was as white as sheet aside from the fact that his cheeks were flushed, and he was sporting rather puffy, tired eyes that were border lining on looking bruised underneath. There was also a sickly, feverish shimmer to his cheeks and forehead. Matilda could spot a sick Ethan a mile off.

Their brown eyes met, Matilda's holding a pleading look, showing Ethan all her resignations for him going to school.

"I need to go now," he mumbled, eyes almost showing a hint of apology.

She sighed. "Where's your brother?"

"Asleep," Ethan muttered, smiling sadly but still waiting for permission to leave.

Matilda sighed, considering the options for a moment. Ethan wasn't actually displaying any symptoms as of yet, if you excluded the fever. Most mums would probably send their child in and see how they went. She had always sympathised more with her children though, never wanting to send them to school if they were feeling poorly. She was also aware that Cal had used this to his advantage a lot of the time, but it was something Ethan had never warmed to. "Go on then, I'll put you out of your misery. Though I bet you're the only boy on the street who'd ever refuse to stay home from school." Matilda smiled, despite her sad tone.

Ethan beamed, though it didn't really show past his exhausted face.

"Ethan- Please go to the nurse if you feel any worse, alright?" she pleaded, kissing him on the forehead and tucking a lock of hair behind his ear.

"I'll be fine." He assured, voice slightly hoarse and seriously doubting the sincerity of what he'd just said. He quickly hugged his mother goodbye before making his way out the door.

"Ethan!" Matilda called a few seconds later. He had already gone. She sighed. "You didn't even eat anything, ridiculous child." She shook her head, albeit slightly amused and proud at his determination.

"Morning," Cal said, casually strolling into the kitchen moments after Ethan had left. "He gone to school?" inquired Matilda's oldest.

"Yes," she said, sounding utterly displeased. "He's really not well, more feverish than last night. And he's exhausted. But if I know our Ethan, he's probably feeling a lot worse than just tired and feverish."

* * *

That much was true.

As soon as he'd walked into English, which he'd had first lesson, the first thing his teacher had said to him was to ask if he wanted to go to 'sick bay'. He'd politely declined the offer – after all, he wasn't quite feeling ill enough to go and sit amongst the primary school kids who were bringing up their breakfasts into buckets ( _not quite_ ) – and proceeded to respond the same to every other teacher who asked if he wanted to go and see the nurse.

The nurse wouldn't do. Really, Ethan just wanted his mum.

He was walking between the seemingly never ending classes of today like a zombie, not picking up on a word Adam or Josh were saying. Ethan's head had started pounding long before second lesson, he felt sick and his eyes were all puffy and watery. His legs were aching and he knew he probably looked terrible. Not to mention the fact that he was completely burning up, so much so that he was sure the fever was making him feel dizzy and faint, and he was absolutely exhausted.

He took in a deep breath, resting his burning forehead on his arms.

"-Ethan, mate, are you okay?" came Adam's voice. He nodded slowly, head sluggishly lifting from his arms. He couldn't really remember how he'd gotten to the canteen. Ethan's breath hitched. He turned away from the table and buried a quiet sneeze into his knuckles. He sniffed, keeping his eyes closed. The sneeze had sent his head spinning.

"You gettin' a cold?" Josh frowned.

Adam scoffed. "I think this might be a little more than a cold, mate," he said sarcastically. "Look at him." He gestured towards Ethan, whom had his head resting on his arms again.

"Ethan?" Josh tried, now glancing worriedly in Ethan's direction.

Ethan mumbled something incoherent, looking up at his friend with weary eyes for a moment before he had to rest his elbows on the table, letting his head meet his hands halfway and closing his eyes. His head felt really heavy.

"Sorry," he breathed. "I feel a bit faint."

"No kidding. I think you should go home," suggested Adam.

Ethan grimaced. "I can't. We still have…. Biology?" he asked doubtfully. Josh confirmed that his foggy-minded guess was correct. "…I like Biology." He broke off coughing.

Adam smiled at the slightly delirious Ethan. "We know you do mate. But we also know that you're not very well. I'm sure your mum would want you to go home." He rested a hand on Ethan's arm to try and reassure him.

Ethan rubbed his throat, wincing in pain. When had his throat started to hurt as well?

He shook his head. "It's okay," he croaked. "I'll manage for one more lesson."

He had to.

* * *

Ethan glanced at the clock. 2:57pm.

He let out a deep breath, aware that he was shaking considerably now.

"Are you sure you're not about to keel over, Eth?" Adam asked, forehead creased with worry. He didn't like it when Adam looked worried, though he'd rather have Adam comforting him now, Josh wouldn't know what to do. Besides, Ethan was fairly sure his forehead was clammy and shiny and probably more unappealing to look at than Adam's forehead right now. He was also fairly sure he'd practically keeled over already. Maybe even more than once already today.

"No," Ethan whimpered, swallowing hard. The action brought tears to his eyes and he had to raise a hand to rub his throat. He starting coughing, sending a searing pain through his throat.

Ethan stood up, about to ask the teacher if he could get his water bottle from his bag. He was so relieved they were doing group work at the moment and that the class wasn't in silence. He felt Adam's hand on his back, and heard something about a drink and the toilets being mentioned. Ethan didn't think he wanted to drink out of the toilet.

Then there was movement. And there was dizziness. He felt his aching legs moving forward even though he was sure he wasn't instructing them to do that. Ethan felt hot and panicked and sick. Oh gosh- he felt sick. Properly sick.

"Definitely sick," said Adam, observing Ethan with a grimace displayed on his face as he watched the younger heave into the toilet. He was already reaching into Ethan's blazer pocket for his mum's phone number. Ethan being Ethan- must have it written down somewhere.

And if Ethan hadn't felt so sick and his cheeks hadn't been taken over by pink all ready, he probably would've blushed at the fact that he'd been speaking his thoughts out loud.

"Are you- you're not okay, are you?" Adam said sadly, sympathetically looking down at the younger boy. He was only five days older than Ethan, with them both being born in November, but Adam was still very protective of him. "C'mon we need to go to front office, there's only…" he glanced at his watch "…nine minutes left of the lesson anyway."

Ethan moaned lightly, trying to refrain from sobbing as he wiped his mouth on a tissue. Adam had given it to him when he had suggested that it would be better than using toilet paper. His cheeks were stained with tears, and Ethan didn't think he'd be able to get up off the floor if he tried.

"Here," Adam smiled, handing Ethan his water bottle and a mint.

"Thank you." Ethan croaked, but he broke off coughing from the pain it caused his throat.

When Ethan was relatively calm the two managed to miraculously stumble their way over to reception, Ethan leaning heavily on Adam for support. The nurse was initially pretty shocked to see the state Ethan was in, which was near enough collapsed to the floor sobbing by the time they'd gotten there, and so she insisted he lay down in the medical bay and even gave him a blanket – that Ethan, even through his feverish haze, hoped had been washed – and a glass of water whilst Adam went to fetch their stuff.

Ethan was well and truly sick. Confessed.


End file.
